Deck Profile: Josh Graham’s Zombie Diva Deck

January 9th, 2010

After first showing up in the Top 16 at the SHONEN JUMP Championship in Columbus, Ohio, “Deep Sea Diva” is still making a splash here in Los Angeles. Experienced Duelists like Josh Graham have decided to combine the speed of “Deep Sea Diva” with the swarming potential of Zombies and Destiny Heroes. The result is a powerful Deck capable of strong plays and quick Summons.

(Check back for the Deck List after the event is over!)

Graham has easy access to the cards in his Deck. “Sangan,” “Goblin Zombie,” “Mystic Tomato,” “Elemental Hero Stratos,” “Reinforcement of the Army,” and “Gold Sarcophagus” all let Graham search for the cards he needs, when he needs them. Graham also plays “Allure of Darkness” and “Destiny Draw” to help him thin the Deck and draw out the cards he can’t easily search for. The capability to search out many of the cards Graham needs gives his Deck a level of consistency unmatched by most others.

Graham’s Deck thrives on the rapid Special Summons it can perform. “Destiny Hero – Malicious” and “Deep Sea Diva” can each Special Summon another copy of themselves from the Deck. Graham can remove one copy of “Destiny Hero – Malicious” from his Graveyard to Special Summon the second one from his Deck. Then he can Summon “Deep Sea Diva” from his hand and recruit another Diva from his Deck. Not only will that enable him to create a Level 8 Synchro Monster by Tuning Malicious to one of his Divas, he’ll still have a “Deep Sea Diva” on the field too!

Even with his copies of Malicious used up, Graham’s Deck doesn’t run out of ways to make use of the Diva. With “Mezuki” plus another Zombie in the Graveyard, Graham can remove the “Mezuki” to Special Summon the Zombie and Synchro Summon a Level 6 Synchro Monster like “Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier.” If he Tunes “Goblin Zombie” to the “Deep Sea Diva,” he even gets to search his Deck for another Zombie to add to his hand. Combined with Brionac’s ability to bounce cards to the opponent’s hand, Graham can easily get himself into a game-winning position just by filling his Graveyard.

In addition to “Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier,” Graham plays 2 copies of “Lightning Vortex,” 1 copy of “Phoenix Wing Wind Blast,” and 2 copies of “Destiny Draw” to discard the cards he needs in the Graveyard. At the same time, these cards speed up Graham’s Deck or get rid of opposing threats.

Graham also decided to play a copy of “Enemy Controller” in his Main Deck – an old favorite that fades in and out of popularity. Graham’s Deck, however, is capable of making some really powerful plays with it. If Graham Summons “Deep Sea Diva” and recruits a second one to the field, he can Tribute it with “Enemy Controller” and take an opponent’s monster. Then he can Tune that monster to his other “Deep Sea Diva.” Graham also relies on “Enemy Controller” to push through game-ending damage. With the increased popularity of “Tragoedia” in Twilight and Zombie Decks, Graham is expecting to encounter it a lot this weekend. But with “Enemy Controller,” he can Tribute the monster he attacked with first to steal “Tragoedia” after his opponent drops it during his Battle Phase. Then he can make a winning attack while it’s out of the way. “Enemy Controller” also doubles as a defensive card by stopping attacks and stealing monsters to prevent Synchro Summons. Graham can even Chain “Enemy Controller” to an opponent’s “Smashing Ground” or “Lightning Vortex” to steal a monster and let it take the hit from the Spell card. With cards like “Goblin Zombie,” “Sangan,” “Destiny Hero – Malicious,” “Deep Sea Diva,” and “Mezuki” that Graham won’t mind Tributing, especially to win the Duel, “Enemy Controller” is a perfect fit for his Deck. It’s a great tech card sure to increase in popularity if Graham is successful using it here today.

Graham has also made some noteworthy Side Deck choices for his Deck. Because of the rising preference for Twilight Decks over Lightsworn Decks, Graham removed “Light-Imprisoning Mirror” from his Side Deck in favor of 3 copies of “Skill Drain.” “Skill Drain” is the perfect counter to the growing presence of “Tragoedia” since it reduces the ATK of “Tragoedia” to 0 and renders it useless. “Skill Drain” also helps Graham deal with “Dark Armed Dragon” and “Chaos Sorcerer” – two powerful cards played in Twilight Decks that “Light-Imprisoning Mirror” can’t stop.

Graham has also chosen to Side Deck 3 copies of “Doomcaliber Knight” to use against other Zombie Decks. With 1900 ATK, “Doomcaliber Knight” has enough strength to attack over monsters like “Mezuki” and “Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer.” On the following turn, it can take down an Effect Monster like “Goblin Zombie” or “Pyramid Turtle” and Tribute itself to negate the effect and limit the opponent’s options. Combined with the pair of “Royal Oppressions” in his Main Deck, Graham is able to lock down opposing Zombie Duelists to gain the upper hand.

Josh Graham put a lot of thought into his Deck in order to prepare it for each match-up. His testing and innovation paid off, as he ended up with a solid Deck that consistently achieves its goal.